Just A Muggle Girl
by Cynical-Smile01
Summary: September 1997: The Death Eaters are in control over the magical world. Every building, every file, all at their disposal. When the ministry fell the Death Eaters were instructed to destroy a file. Just one. The file was lost forever, and the post war government have spent the past 17 years trying to solve it. The contents of that file? The name of every muggleborn child under 11.
1. Some Very Old Books

**Chapter 1: Some Very Old Books**

 **I will only say this once, so take this notice as read for each chapter. I do not own anything you recognise.**

Success is the sum of many things, as my head of year has decided we must be told. It is very helpful you are taking the time to tell us this with a sum total of 2 weeks before exam season. Please, finish your speech and we can go and revise and become successful.

Actually, I probably will not spend much time revising. I have severely been infected by what our American cousins would call 'senioritis'. I spent a week and a half in the States earlier this year on a school exchange. My friends gave the definition of this condition as "The feeling that you cannot be bothered to work at the latter end of the year because it will not change anything." This definitely described the mood in the sixth form block. Yet, we are shackled to our textbooks. Trapped between concrete and glass. The never ending claustrophobia of the exam season. All day you sit hidden from fresh air, from feeling the sun on your face and the smell of pollen on the breeze.

Sometimes you just want to lie in a meadow unconnected from everything for an hour. I often walk down to the reservoir during my lunch break and I shall sit for the hour doing fuck all. But even then I listen to music, because I am a child of the modern day. I cannot bear to hear silence. I don't hear the birds or the wind because I am enthralled to the crooning of Nick Cave and Rufus Wainwright.

Eventually I will retreat inside, forced to feel guilt for not pressing my nose to that grindstone, for wasting a precious hour. Inside, back hidden from anything natural by the manmade jungle. Back to our books to whom we are chained with the promise of knowledge. This isn't true knowledge, it is a way to enslave you to the ideals of a perfect society, to make you a conforming drone. The so called knowledge is not setting you free at all.

Hopefully this short explanation has told you everything about my apathy to life. To summarise – if you are taking exams, it's shit. I have no idea why I have chosen to subject myself to another 3 years of education. Why did I even choose to spend 2 years in a bloody school sixth form when I could be living the high life at a college?

But, as it always does, the exam season has come around. With university places on the line, motivation to succeed is high. One day this will all be worth it.

The hall is set up as it always is, rows upon rows of desks ending at the stage. A huge clock is projected on the front of the hall the second hand ticking away the moments until the end of the paper.

The euphoria I felt after the last exam was immense. The burden that was on my shoulders would exist no more. I ran down the road towards the reservoir screaming for joy. I plonked myself down by the water's edge and plucked a flower from the grass. I stared at it for a while. Holy shit, did that flower just move? I swear it did. And it definitely wasn't that size when I picked it. The petals had grown more lilac, definitely.

Then just like that, it wilted. Almost as soon as I realised what was happening it wilted. That was the final straw. I screamed.

Crazy stuff would happen when I was little. Nothing major. But sometimes it felt as if I would stay in the air just too long when on the trampoline. Or that a glass would tip when no-one was touching it. I had long ago dismissed it because really, it could have been anything. But after the display at the reservoir just now I found myself rethinking everything. I wasn't into the whole religion thing, so I didn't see it as some sign from the man upstairs. I mean, even if it was, what a waste of a miracle to manipulate a flower. But that didn't leave me with a whole lot of options. If I was a child, I would say it was telekinesis, much like Matilda in the Roald Dahl book. However, I am not a child. Such things do not exist, surely.

Besides, telekinesis might explain the other things, but Matilda certainly could not manipulate living things, only inanimate objects. So why did that flower grow?

DotDotDot

I was in my room, packing. To put it simply, I was not going to stick around. I didn't need my bed; I needed answers. My parents wouldn't be home until later so I left a note telling them I was going to visit a friend and I'd be back in a few days. They wouldn't be pleased, but hey, I'm an adult. My backpack sat on my desk as I crammed things into it: a couple of t-shirts, a spare pair of jeans, as many clean socks, bras and knickers as I could grab. This little trip could take a while. In went my toothbrush and assorted toiletries. My tablet, laptop, headphones and respective charger.

I was practically walking out the door as I discarded my suit for something more comfortable. It's a long drive to the National Library of Wales. Why there, I hear you cry? Because I needed to find some very old books.

My best friend had just completed her first year as a History Undergrad in Aberystwyth and was spending the summer gaining work experience at the library. My logic was that what happened to me can't have been unique, even if the only records of it are hidden deep in the most obscure books. If I need obscure books I have to go somewhere that has every book. Oh, and I'd need someone to help me find those weird books. I needed a floor to kip on and a guide who knew the library back to front; Katie was the woman for the job. I rung her asking to crash at hers and she was more than pleased. She also promised to take me to the pubs tonight. I hadn't told her why I needed her help though.

The drive to Aberystwyth is actually really pleasant. Once you get past Kidderminster it's all country A roads and small towns. Mitch, my car, was my 17th Birthday present. Dependable thing he is. He had been my Mum's car, but she wanted a newer car just as I was old enough to have my own car. Also, he was sort of compensation for the fact we live in the middle of nowhere. My parents pay my insurance; I have a job in the local pub to pay for fuel. Me and Mitch knew one another, so we settled down for the drive, with Flogging Molly blaring out the windows, as we headed into the summer sun. _"Death Valley Queen, Where have you been, Since they crowned you in glory, Filled your head with dreams…"_

DotDotDot

I've been to visit Katie a few times since she moved and the view you get of Aberystwyth as you reach the top of the hill overlooking the bay still takes my breath away. The other thing that took my breath away was Katie's bear hug that she bestowed on me the minute I walked into the library. She then forcibly propelled me out the door, yelling to her supervisor to have a nice weekend. On the walk to the bar I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to pay for my own drinks as she was broke enough as it was. It was strange being in The Cambrian outside term time – the place was dead. On the other hand, it did mean that we could hear each other talk.

"How was the last exam?"

"The exam was shit, the minute the clock turned 11 I was ecstatic."

"Same as always, hey? I wouldn't hold out your hopes for next year, it's just as bad at uni."

It went on for over an hour, us just catching up like nothing was wrong. I wasn't going to advertise that in public, even if it was a deserted bar. On our way back to her halls we swung by the chip shop, which makes it sound if we are hammered, but honestly guv, I swear I only had two bottles of Kopparberg. This sort of serious discussion required my wits to be about me.

With my best mate a year older than me I had been inside more student digs than I cared to count in the past 9 months. The halls she ended up in for the summer were no better than the ones she had before exams. On the plus side they were closer to the National Library than her seafront room had been. Ironically it also had the sea view you would have assumed she got before, but instead the previous room overlooked the bins out back. We carried our precious cargo through to the kitchen, briefly opening the door to her room for me to sling my backpack in.

My parents were texting me like crazy so I tried to throw them off saying that I was talking to Katie after my last exam and she offered me a floor to kip on and someone to celebrate with. The key is to stick to the truth as far as possible. There'd be hell to pay when I got home, but this couldn't wait.

The rest of Katie's flat mates were out. Most of them had summer jobs and went home at weekends. The rest were probably celebrating the weekend down at Yoko's. I couldn't care less really. The chip wrappings lay between us at the breakfast bar, crumbs everywhere from bread. Chip Butties really are the best food.

"Something is up." That was definitely a statement. "Not that I don't appreciate your company, it's always a great laugh when you come to visit. But a mysterious phone call with the bullshit excuse you need to use the library for some project? You don't think I was fooled. You have that brand new Library of Birmingham not half an hour from your house. That has pretty much all the books you need!" She pause to grab a chip, "So what the real deal?"

"You have to promise not to laugh?" She nodded silently. "After my last exam I went to sit down by the reser, you know, like how we all used to sit around last summer and make daisy chains and stuff for jokes. Well, I picked this flower and I swear to fucking God it started growing in my hand." Katie went sheet white at this statement.

"Lizzy, it started growing and it was in no way attached to the ground?"

I went really high pitched, "And then it just died. Like that." I clicked my fingers. "What the fuck happened? So I need someone I trust to help me research it. I can't be the only person who this has happened to, right? I need someone to help me find those books. So I came to the one place and one person I know who can get pretty much every book ever published. Please," I squeaked even higher, "Please will you help me?

"This is bad. I mean real bad."

"If you'd rather I just left, I'll go."

"Elizabeth Clarke, as if I would do that to you. That is not what I meant. But something is seriously wrong here. Has anything like this happened before."

"I…I think there were a few odd things when I was little. But glasses of water getting mysteriously knocked over don't mean I'm the next Matilda."

"Shit Shit Shit! What to do!"

"Katie, you're scaring me. Are you ok?"

"Oh fuck it. Do you remember Alex?" Alex was Katie's younger brother, he was probably 13, I don't remember. He disappeared to boarding school when he should have started secondary school, apparently he won some kind of scholarship. I'd barely seen him since then, not that I saw him much before, either.

"What on earth does Alex have to do with this?"

"Bloody hell Liz, I shouldn't be telling you this. Magic exists! Alright, I said it! They gave him a place at some magic school up in Scotland." I was now infinitely glad the flat was deserted. "And from what you've told me," She paused, closing her eyes, "I think you might be magic too."


	2. Where I Belong

**Chapter 2 – Where I Belong**

At those words, everything started to fall into place. I wasn't crazy. There was actually some real thing to explain it.

"What do I do now Katie?" I asked quietly. I was well and truly stumped. "Why did Alex get whisked off and I didn't?"

"I don't know. But when Alex went to this Hogwarts place some teacher came to speak to my parents. They told us a bit about the wizarding world. You know they communicate by sending letters by owl? Bonkers. Well, my parents bought an owl for Alex before he started school. I'll text them, ask them to send Athena over. We can send a letter to Alex. Ask him to talk to people that know about this sort of stuff.

Lizzy composed a letter to her brother while she left me gazing into the distance.

 _Dear Alex,_

 _Hope you are well, and that you are actually studying once in a while. Cheer up; it's only 2 weeks until the end of term. Strange thing happened today, Lizzy came to see me and she said she had made weird things happen, just like you used to. So I kinda told her where you are. We need help and you are the only one who knows where to get that help. Tell whoever you need to; just make sure that they come to speak to her._

 _Lots of Love,  
Katie x_

She sent it with Athena, who I learnt was the owl in question. Scotland is a long way away and the sun was finally setting on the horizon, so we retreated for the night to watch The Blues Brothers.

Morning couldn't come soon enough. Morning held answers. Of course they'd be a price that came with dawn, but for some reason I could not wait.

DotDotDot

The next morning we woke up to find an owl outside the window. I confess I screamed when I saw the feathery git before I realised where I was and what I found out last night. I let a grin grace my face. _Magic!_ I had actual magic cursing through my blood! But then I could see a bit of a problem. The security restrictor on the window prevented my opening it far enough to allow the owl in. I was stumped. They call us the top 5 percent at school. (Sorry, _they did_. I was no longer a school child.) Then again, common sense does not equal intelligence.

"Katie!" I shook her shoulders. "Katie, that owl's come back. I can't fit it through the window. How the hell did you manage it yesterday?"

"Bloody hell Liz, it's the arse crack of dawn! Why so early?"

"It's mid-day you idiot."

"Just stick your hand out as far as you can and make sure not to drop the letter" She instructed sleepily. Then, she sat bolt upright. "Hang on, Lizzy doesn't know Magic. Shit, am I dreaming?"

"No Kate, I know about magic now." I stuck my hand under the restrictor and the owl, I think it's called Athena, deposited the letter in my hand. "Do you want to read it or shall I?"

"Pass it here then." She scanned the letter before reading it aloud.

 _Dear sis,_

 _Firstly, the authorities aren't too impressed with you, though admittedly you aren't bound by their laws so they can't do anything anyway. If I had told Lizzy then I would be in deep shit right now. Just saying._

 _Anyway, I passed the letter to the Head Teacher who will be in contact with her soon once they carry out some background checks. You see, there was a massive war like, 17 years ago, and they lost loads of records. That's probably why they didn't come for her. Now they know who she is and where she is, hopefully it will be easy enough. Dunno what they plan to do now though! Tell her it's fine if she wants to go back home, they'll find her._

 _Your amazing, brilliant brother_

Like I said, I barely knew Alex, but I hope he's done the right thing. It's sounds great from where I'm sitting, but then again I don't know what I'm letting myself in for.

DotDotDot

Three days later I sat in the study at home mindlessly browsing YouTube. Mum and Dad weren't pleased that I had buggered off to Aberystwyth, but really there wasn't much they could do. I hadn't told them what Katie had said, because I doubted that these people would actually do something. I mean, it wasn't like they could send me to this school!

Finishing school was liberating. No longer did I have to wear a suit, suffer through assembly and follow pointless edicts. Oh I knew that eventually I would have to do all of the above, if you replace assembly with meetings, but for the next 3 years I was free. Only thing was that even funny cat videos and vlogs of John Green wearing way too much Lycra couldn't distract me. All those books I read as a child, they were becoming true before my eyes. Yet I had been left by myself to wallow in questions without one word of advice. Katie had been great, texting me to keep my spirits up. I had taken a few extra shifts at the pub too, but time seemed to move way to slow for my liking.

Then came the knock at the door.

In front of me was a very tiny man. With a moustache. I assume this must be the magic representative. Whoever he was, he was certainly not _normal_ , if that's what normal meant anymore.

"Ah," the man squeaked, "I assume you are Elizabeth Clarke?"

"Errr," I stammered, quite put out by what was finally happening. "Yes, please call me Lizzie. And you are?"

"Professor Filius Flitwick. I'm the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Nice…to…meet…you." I forced myself to say, "Please, come in."

We sat in the living room with cups of tea in awkward silence.

"Are your parents in?" I was asked.

"No, they'll both be at work until later. Professor, what will happen to me?" I rushed out in a fit of panic."

"Call me Filius. I must say we were at quite a loss as to what to do with you. We have never found one of the lost generation so old."

"'Lost Generation'?"

"There was a war in our world 17 years back over a ridiculous notion of something called Blood Purity. The aggressors particularly hated Witches and Wizards with no other magical people in their family, like yourself. They destroyed all records of those under 11 at the time. You are in the second to last year that was affected. We found a few people earlier, but until you we found no-one older than 13. We think the rest of them, their magic died out. But really, we aren't sure. They may have just developed enough control that they don't get outbursts as you experienced."

"So you have no idea what to do." I said despondently.

"Not at all my dear. Once we confirmed what young Mr Bennett was saying we came up with an idea. I must say it was lucky your friend has a muggleborn brother or you may never have found us, but I digress. The suggestion is you join Hogwarts as a student professor. You would help with our Muggle Studies course, which could use someone like you, and in your spare time you could study magic. The beauty of this arrangement is that you would be able to be tutored by Hogwarts Professors and have access to the Library for textbooks. What do you think of this plan?"

"I'd be leaving behind everything I knew. I'd be giving up going to uni, I'd leave my friends, my parents. I don't know how to teach. But magic is everything I used to dream of. And I can't deny that it's part of me." I sighed over my cup of tea.

"If I could help ease your concerns somewhat, we would set you up with a floo connection, so you could travel home whenever you like. Also, in the Wizarding world, very few people attend University, we have no Wizarding Higher Education. Training is on the job, similar to what we are offering you. I could also take you to visit Hogwarts before you decide."

"I'd like that. I'd also have to speak to my parents before I agreed to anything. But me, a teacher? I'm only barely not a school child myself!" I exclaimed.

"We have absolute confidence that you will succeed. If you have nothing else, we could take that trip now?"

"Now, but Katie said it was in Scotland! I need to be home to make dinner later."

The short man chuckled. "There is such thing as magic, you know. You would be home more than early enough to make food."

It wasn't like watching John Green vlogs was particularly pressing. "Alright then."

DotDotDot

It was like whenever the Doctor got a new companion. They don't know what will happen, but the adventure grabs them by the hand and whispers "run". That was me, walking through the gate onto the deserted country lane we lived on. Filius offered me his arm and warned me that the following sensation may be unpleasant. The next thing I knew I couldn't breathe, my lungs were being constricted and the world went dark.

We arrived on the outskirts of what was clearly a small village. A carriage with no horses attached was in front of us. Filius gestured towards it, so I climbed in. "We cannot use magic to get closer to the school, for security reasons. This way, you get to see the grounds as well." He remarked.

Then there is was. This imposing castle, almost completely devoid of life. The sun was rising high in the sky, shining down on the gothic castle and reflecting off the lake which sat in the grounds. There were a few children milling about on the water's edge wearing what looked like a relatively normal school uniform except the long black coats they were mostly carrying.

The carriage trundled closer to the castle. I turned to Filius. "Is a school in a castle normal for…magical people then?"

"Well, my dear, we are the only magic school in Britain and Ireland. I understand a few places on the continent have quite spectacular schools, but I've never visited. They say Beauxbatons in France is in a palace, but us wizards; we do like to show off. We get out here by the way."

So there I was, an ordinary girl from Birmingham, standing in the entrance hall of a school for magic.

The place was huge. The ceiling must have been three stories high. Ornate carvings graced the walls interspersed with paintings. Holy shit, did that painting move?

This trip could not get any weirder. Moving staircases, secret passages. What was this place?

Actually, I did know this place, deep down. I was like something inside me fitted. All of my life there was a buzzing inside my head, but for some reason it had gone. I felt a bit resentful, I guess. I wish I could have been one of the lucky ones they found earlier. I could have gone to school here, surrounded by all these amazing things. But I didn't. So know I was faced with the agonising choice of leaving behind everything I had known to join this beautifully terrifying world. And I had made up my mind.

Filius took me to meet a lady called Minevra, the Headmistress. Her office, in one of the towers, held commanding views over all the grounds. What a wonderful place to work. She shook my hand and offered me a seat.

"Elizabeth, it's a pleasure to meet you. I hope this visit has explained more to you than we could through just telling you. What did you think of our humble school?"

"It was just…amazing. I was lost for words. I went to quite a good school, but I wish we had half the opportunities students at Hogwarts get."

"I assume you've had time to consider our offer. Do you want to make a decision now, or do you need more time to think it through?"

"Minevra, when I entered this school it felt like something was complete. I've spent so long wondering who I am; I would be a fool to turn this opportunity down. Of course I'll take you up on it. Thank you so much for this chance."

"Well then Filius, could you show Assistant Professor Clarke to her quarters? It's a delight to have you on board. I think you'll be right at home here. You've just now got the fun task of telling your parents…"

 **I don't know if I'll continue this, probably not. But I quite liked the idea of exploring the issue of Muggleborns who had yet to enter Hogwarts at the time of the war. So I'll just leave this with you as it seemed a shame to waste it!**


End file.
